Christmas with the Royals: This is how Felipe, Letizia and Co celebrate.

In the Spanish royal family, Christmas is Catholic – and surprisingly simple. The Bourbons are one of the oldest and most important royal families in Europe. They have been around since the early Middle Ages and ruled in a different line for centuries not only on the Iberian Peninsula but also in France. The current royal family has been on the throne again since 1978. In 1873 there was a revolution and the then king had to abdicate. After almost two years it was reintroduced, but it didn’t last long. In 1931, King Felipe’s great-grandfather, Alfonso XIII, was forced to flee into exile.

A military government under General Franco ruled Spain until the 1970s. However, he appointed the young Bourbon prince Juan Carlos as his successor, so that the monarchy was reintroduced after the general’s death. The then King Juan Carlos and his wife Sofía created their own new traditions. Due to its eventful history, this royal family is more dependent on the goodwill of its subjects than other monarchies. Without much private wealth and with only moderate government support, they have always tried to appear modest and to avoid the pomp of their British relatives in their private lives. This can still be seen today in the holiday customs of the Bourbons.

The hosts of the Christmas Eve feast have been King Felipe and his wife Letizia since their accession to the throne ten years ago. They receive their extended family guests in the Prince’s Pavilion, which is located on the grounds of the Zarzuela Palace near Madrid. Ex-Queen Sofía still lives there, as has her sister Princess Irene of Greece since 1981. Former King Juan Carlos, on the other hand, has been in exile in Abu Dhabi since he was charged with tax evasion. The Prado Palace in the heart of the capital is now only a venue for state receptions; it has not served as a royal residence since 1931. Since the change in throne, the king’s sisters with their partners and children, unlike before, rarely come to the Zarzuela Palace for Christmas.

Dinner on Christmas Eve is prepared early by Spanish standards, around 7 p.m., so that most of the palace staff can then go home to their families to celebrate. Only a few service and security staff who are on duty remain in the villa and also receive a special dinner that evening. Pleasantly pragmatic and the exception in royal families: the banquet, as introduced in the reigns of ex-King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía, is set up in buffet form so that the family can easily help themselves.

Christmas traditions haven’t changed much in the last few years since Letizia has been hosting. A selection of stuffed turkey, sautéed vegetables, fish and seafood pies, smoked salmon, Iberian ham and foie gras are usually served at the banquet buffet. For dessert, try tropical fruits, homemade coffee cream ice cream, chocolate desserts and classic Christmas sweets such as polvorónes (Spanish Christmas cookies with cinnamon and roasted almonds) and nougat from Grenada.

After dinner, the family opens their Christmas presents. The figure of the Christ Child is unknown in Spain, where children usually receive their gifts from the Three Wise Men on January 6th. But since Queen Sofía is of German-Greek descent (a great-granddaughter of Kaiser Wilhelm II), she introduced gifts on Christmas Eve for her children Felipe, Cristina and Elena. The Spanish Letizia, on the other hand, was used to receiving gifts on Epiphany before she married into the royal family. The compromise was established within the royal family so that Princesses Leonor and Sofia would always receive two presents. The holiday on January 6th is traditionally celebrated by Jesús Ortiz, the queen’s father, in his home in the Madrid suburb of Pozuelo de Alarcón. Letizia’s parents are divorced, so it’s usually only her mother, María Rocasolano, who celebrates with the royal family on Christmas Eve.

When King Felipe was still heir to the throne, the royal family also celebrated the reception of the Magi every year in the Plaza de la Villa in Madrid. This ceremony has no longer taken place since the pandemic. The only official appointment for the monarch on Christmas Day is his television speech on December 25th. This year it will certainly also be about the flood disaster in the country, which hit Valencia and numerous other provinces hard, among other things. It is possible that the royal couple will make further visits to those affected during the Christmas season to provide comfort and help.